What It Means:

"I tell guys, make me put you in the lineup," manager Jeff Banister said. "Let your game put you in the lineup. Delino has made us do that." He earned the role by slashing .302/.448/.321 with 12 steals this spring, likely reducing Jurickson Profar back to a utility role and sending Carlos Gomez down the Rangers' order. DeShields opened 2016 as the starting center fielder and leadoff man, but he was quickly replaced before eventually turning in an impressive rookie campaign. The 24-year-old is a skilled runner and should be able to produce some fantasy value for owners in 2017.

Prior to the announcement, numberFire's algorithms projected DeShields to hit .242 and steal eight bases across just 209 plate appearances this upcoming season.